Team Garmin-Slipstream: 6 additional riders in 2010

Team Garmin Slipstream signs six new riders to their 2010 pro team including young and up-coming talent plus experienced pro tour riders.

Robbie Hunter – the South African joins from Barloworld and in his new role with the Garmin-Slipstream squad will be a huge asset in leading out sprinter Tyler Farrar. Garmin will also look to Hunter for various stage wins throughout the year.

Fredrik Kessiakoff – Kessiakoff is undoubtedly one of the most talented, though slightly unknown, climbers in the peloton. The Garmin team has a history of helping lesser-known riders blossom and believes Kessiakoff is no exception. The four-time Swedish mountain biking champion joins the team from Fuji-Servetto.

Michel Kreder – 21 year-old Kreder is a climber who can also sprint, and Garmin will look for him to perform in one-day races and stage races. His younger brother Raymond currently rides for Slipstream’s Felt-Holowesko Partners U-23 team.

Peter Stetina – true to its mission of developing the best young American talent, Garmin is calling up Peter Stetina from the ranks of its U-23 team, Felt-Holowesko partners. The two-time U-23 National Time Trial Champion has been with the Slipstream operation since the outfit started when he was just 15 years old.

Johan Vansummeren – the two-time top ten finisher of Paris Roubaix joins Garmin from Silence-Lotto, where he supported Cadel Evans. The addition of Vansummeren creates a triple-threat for Garmin’s Cobbled Classics crew, including Martijin Maaskant and Tyler Farrar.

Tom Zirbel – the number-one ranked rider on the domestic circuit, Zirbel is an accomplished time trialist and was recently second in the US National Time Trial Championships to Garmin’s own David Zabriskie.

“We’re poised for another exciting year with these riders rounding out an already strong roster,” said Jonathan Vaughters, CEO of Slipstream Sports. “We started the team with the goal of developing young talent, so riders Peter Stetina and Michel Kreder were natural fits for us. And this year we?ll continue to build on the success Tyler has had by giving him more lead-out guys, and the success that Christian and Wiggo have had in the mountains by adding talented climbers. But make no mistake, the riders on this list are all capable of stage wins and one-day race victories. 2010 is shaping up to be a big year for us.”